By Ken Freedman, DC
Everyone experiences some type of stress in their daily lives, whether it’s physical, chemical or emotional. When your body is stressed, the nervous system works to help your body manage the stress so it doesn’t hurt you. Interference in the nervous system diminishes your body’s ability to compensate to daily stresses. Over time, this can make a person more susceptible to anxiety and depression, and can limit their ability to have a better state of mind and sense of ease.
What are the different types of stress people experience?
There are three key forms of stress. Physical stress, like carrying heavy things, having poor posture, wearing high-heeled shoes, carrying a baby on one hip, being pregnant, being born, sitting with a wallet in your back pocket, having a chair that doesn’t fit you correctly, falls, accidents and injuries. Chemical stress can come from therapeutic and recreational drugs, environmental toxins, like cleaning products around the home, food additives, colors, dyes and preservatives. All cause harm to the body. Then there is emotional stress: production demands, meeting deadlines, challenging relationships, pressure at work, bills to pay and traffic. We are barraged with physical, chemical and emotional stresses on a daily basis.
How does the body respond to stress?
When the body is stressed, a part of the nervous system kicks into high gear. The body shifts all of its energy and resources toward fighting off a threat, real or imagined, through a series of chemical reactions in the body. The heart pumps faster, muscles tense and digestion slows. Cortisol, a chemical made by the adrenal glands, helps to mobilize sugar, glucose, and fat for energy. This enables the body to have the fuel that it needs to be able to manage stress better and respond more effectively.
How does chiropractic care help your body handle stress better?
It helps it through locating, detecting and reducing a condition called the vertebral subluxation complex, commonly referred to as subluxations. When the vertebrae in the spine go out of alignment, nerves become irritated. This short-circuits the flow of energy that controls how well your body can tolerate the physical, chemical, and emotional stresses you’re subjected to on a daily basis. Regular chiropractic checkups identify and locate subluxations. Painless chiropractic adjustments correct subluxations and improve how well your body can handle the daily stresses you can’t avoid.
What type of chiropractic treatments are used to help patients?
In my office, I offer a variety of chiropractic techniques. In addition to the traditional twisting and popping techniques, I also offer techniques that involve absolutely no twisting, popping or cracking of the spinal joints. I personalize an adjusting technique to each patient’s clinical needs and individual preference.
What other services help patients manage stress better?
We are one of the only offices in the area that take a comprehensive approach to better stress management. For example, in addition to chiropractic care, we offer patients customized exercise and rehab programs to improve strength and resistance to physical stress. This reduces the need for more frequent chiropractic visits, enables you to perform physical tasks better, exercise more vigorously with shorter recovery times and compete better with less chance of injury. If your feet are out of alignment, they take your body with it. We are also one of the only offices in the area that checks foot alignment and can improve it for better chiropractic results and stress reduction. Every extra pound of fat a person carries translates into four pounds of additional stress on the lower back. Our fantastic Doctor-Supervised ChiroThin Weight Loss Program enables most people to lose an average of 20 to 35 pounds in six weeks, eating real food with no drugs or exercise, no prepackaged foods, shakes or bars. This takes a lot of stress off of the joints, as well as the heart.
Is your exposure to environmental toxins taking a toll on your health? We can find out and offer targeted strategies to help. We also offer an all natural, deep cellular cleanse that removes harmful toxins from the liver, kidneys, lymphatics, skin and lungs. It also supports healing leaky gut syndrome, a common condition in the gut that promotes excess toxicity. I also refer patients to MDs and psychologists that specialize in helping patients reduce their dependence on harmful drugs.
People who suffer from anxiety and depression, as well as other maladies, have found terrific benefit from receiving Reiki care. Reiki is a healing art that’s been around for over 2,500 years. Reiki Master Heidi Scanlon, who is a very gifted practitioner in my office with over 17 years of experience, helps people manage stress more effectively with less dependence upon harmful medications.
Call 732-254-6011 to schedule a private consultation at no charge or obligation. Day, evening and weekend hours are available, by appointment. You can also visit us at www.freedmanchiropracticcenter.com.

